all ten registered voters in dixville notch, new hampshire, expected to cast their ballots by then. have that live for two shows, 9 and midnight tonight, both live. that's all for us tonight. don lemon is up next. over to you, don. hello, everyone, you are watching cnn and i'm don lemon. tonight, i'm in downtown columbus, ohio, at the beautiful boat house restaurant, our host here and i want to show what you thousands and thousands of people in this city did today. it's early voting in the columbus and all over the state of ohio, voters here got one weekend to cast votes ahead of election day, just one weekend. last election, they could vote on five weekends before the election. so, these people bundled up against the cold, i was out there with them today. they waited in very long lines here in columbus, some of them for two hours or more to pick a man to award their state's 18 electoral votes.

and a brand new poll to show you, a nationwide poll of likely voters who were asked just one question, who do you support for president of the united states? and if you thought the race was close up to now, i want you to take a look at this. 49%, 49%. president obama and mitt romney, nationwide among likely voters. that poll was taken just this weekend by cnn and orc international. three other national non-partisan polls released today showed the two candidates tied as well. and talk about nationwide you can we have got reporter teams traveling with the candidates, and cnn correspondents in all the battleground states as campaign 2012 comes to an end on election day. hectic travel days for mitt romney and president obama. you see mitt romney right now in virginia he is in new port news. let's listen n >> paychecks or

>> paychecks or things of the past, i have a clear and unequivocal message, with the right leadership, america is about to come roaring back. we're americans. we can do anything. and the only this i can that stand between us and some of the best years we have ever known is lack of leadership and that's why we have elections. this tuesday is a moment to look into the future and imagine what we can do to put the past four years behind us and to start building a new future. you saw the differences when president obama and i were side by side during the debates. he says it has to be this way. i say it can't stay this way. he's offering excuses. i've got a plan.

i can't wait to get started. he is hoping we'll settle. but americans don't settle. we build. we aspire. we listen to a voice that says we can do better. that better life is out there. it is waiting for us. our destiny is in your hands. two more days. >> audience: two more days, two more days. two more days. >> two more days and we can get to work. we can get to work rebuilding our country, restoring our confidence and renewing our conviction. confidence that went a solid path for improvement, confidence college grads four years from now will have better jobs. confidence that the single moms working two jobs will have a shot at a better job.

and so on november sixth, we come together for a better future. on november 7th, we'll get to work. now i need to you reach across the street to that neighbor with the other yard sign and i will reach across the aisle in washington to people of good faith with the other party. there's much more than our moment. it's america's moment of renewal and purpose and optimism. we journeyed far and wide in this great campaign for america's future and now we are almost home. i had an experience before i went to bed last night that touched me. i was at a rally in englewood, colorado. we had driven through a place called monument, colorado. we got someone from colorado here. there you go. it reminded me of something that happened many years before,

which underscored my conviction that the american people will always rise to the occasion, something very special about the people of this land. we have within our hearts a desire to live for something bigger than ourself, our family, our faith, our community, our school, our nation. this was at a boy scout court of honor. any boy scouts here sniffs at the formica table there at this court of honor we give out eagle scouts to boys who earned them and i was at the end of the table next to the american flag and the scout master who was speaking to the boys and the parent there is was the scout master from monument, colorado. he described the if a act his boy scout troop wanted to have a very special american flag so they bought one, they had it flown above the capitol building. then when it came home, they called nasa and said, we'd like

to you take our flag and put ton the space shuttle and nasa agreed. he said, you can't imagine how proud those boys were to be able to watch the tv set in their home rooms at school and see the shuttle "challenger" launched into the air and then they saw it explode on the tv screen. and he said he called nasa a couple of weeks later and said have you found any remnant of our flag and they hadn't. and then he kept calling, week after week, month after month, finally gave up, till one day he was reading an article in the paper that described the debris from the "challenger" disaster and it mentioned a flag. so he called and nasa said, in fact, we have a presentation to make to your boys. and so nasa came together, the scout troop came together. and prevented the scouts with this plastic container, said the boys open it up and there inside was our flag in perfect condition. and he said the flag pole.

they said, mr. romney, and you know why i just reached over around grabbed it and pulled it out and it was as if electricity was running through my arm. because i thought about the men and women in our space program and the fact that they willingly walk in harm's way out of a desire to provide learning and knowledge for us, they live for something bigger than themselves. think of our men and women in uniform and their willingness to walk in harm's way for us, for prosperity, for freedom and our future. 24 there is a verse in one of our national hymns that i love, "america the beautiful" there is a verse that begins this way that touches me, all beautiful for heroes proved in liberating strife, who more than self their country loved and mercy more than life. would our veterans and members

of the armed services please raise your hands and be recognized? thank you. this is a military state, you know that? some other people in our country who give themselves to different things that bring them greater purpose and meaning. think about my sister, she is a hero in my view. a hero is defined not as someone who is larger than life but as someone who is larger than themself. my sister, lynn, is in her 70s, her husband passed away a few years ago. she has eight children, seven of them are married with children of their own. the eighth child was born down syndrome and he is now 43 years old. lynn devotes her life making sure jeffrey has as full and abundant life as he possibly can have. she is a hero to me.

think of all the single moms across the country scraping and saving to have get by so they can have enough money for a good meal at the end of the day for their children. think of the moms and dads working two jobs so they can buy the clothes the kids need so they don't stick out and look different from the other kids at school. think about the parents this christmas who won't be exchanging gifts with each other so they can have enough to give gifts to their children at christmastime. we are a generous people. we are a great people. this is a time when we need to have leaders this will call us together and bring us together i will do everything in my power to reignite america's economy to rebuild our principles of trust and faith to make sure that our military stays stronger than any other in the world by a large margin but i will also work to bring us together, to bring the american people to a conviction wary great nation, in part, because we are so united, a

challenge which i have for you. i need to you go out and convince people to get behind us, to vote, to join our team. one final push will get us there i know we can make it happen. we are so very, very close. so the door a brighter future, it's there. it's open us to. it's waiting for us. i need your vote. i need your help. walk with me. let's walk together. let's start anew. america is coming back strong. we will help people who need help with good jobs. thanks so much, you guys. virginia is the best. thank you so much. thank you. thanks, guys. >> there is mitt romney in new port news, virginia, of course, telling very familiar stories he has been telling on the campaign

trail this is a final push and they are trying to get people out to vote. you heard what he said, i need your vote. you know, we are waiting for president bim clinton as well who is going to speak. you heard from president barack obama last hour here on cnn. president bill clinton is representing mr. obama in st. cloud, minnesota, let's listen now to the former president bill clinton. >> woe rather give up the 150,000 high-tech jobs. barack obama makes better decisions than that. and i was talking with senator franklin backstage, you know, and al tries real hard to maintain the gravitas of a senator, but every now and then, he gets back into being a comedian, he says, you know, this deal that romney did to try to cover up and make people forget that he opposed the

chrysler bailout by talking about jeep, he says it is all i can do i can make a living on that for the rest of my life. now you remember what he said? he tried convince everybody that he really wasn't against the gm bailout, except that he was and we got it on record. answered tied himself in so many knots i think he was aired the job as chief contortionist for the cirque de soleil. well, president obama is helping move jeeps to china. y'all saw that, right? out of ohio. out of ohio. i duke that personally because when i was president, our white

house actually worked with ohio to bring that jeep plant to toledo. i know a lot about that. the problem with a lot of governor romney charges that somebody knows a lot about it. and so they are doing great, they are going to spend $500 million more on the site. they are going to hire more people, going to produce new lines and expanding in michigan, so jeep says it's not true. so he keeps repeating it, juice letter, which ounce jeep, stays is not true. so he keeps repeating it. so in fact, general motors says it's not true. and he puts a television ad on, saying the same thing that he has already been told by the leaders of the american automobile industry. he know it is not true and makes an ad any way, he thinks we are all dumb and people are scared about losing their jobs and they got a lot more money to spend than we do because of karl rove

and the koch brothers and all their secret super pacs which are raining down dollars on jim. and they put it off. and then, in the greatest move of all, you know, chrysler is majority owned by fiat, an italian car company. so then romney says, the president is working with the italians. to move jobs to china. there's this vast and dark conspiracy. i guess next week, he will come after the irish and i'll be in trouble. i don't know. this is the silliest thing >> that is the former president bill clinton in st. cloud, minnesota, of course, representing president obama on the campaign trail tonight. our jessica yellin is traveling with the president. i want to remind you, if you

want to watch -- continue to watch bill clinton, you can go to cnn.com/live and you can see the rest of that i spoke with jessica yellen a short time ago traveling with the president in cincinnati. here she is. >> reporter: hi you don. president obama rallied a crowd here in cincinnati of more than 13,000. he delivered his closing argument telling the crowd that he, not governor romney, is a candidate of change. he is a candidate that as president, voters can trust. he says he will fight special interest and that he is good for his word. listen to this. >> you know, i say what i mean and i mean what i say. i said i would end the war in iraq, i ended the war in iraq. >> now, don, the president is not done. from here, he goes to aurora, colorado, colorado, as you know, is a battle ground state, very close there. the president is fighting non-stop in these battleground

states. in the final day he will go be back here in colorado. he will also visit wisconsin. that's traditionally a blue state. he should not have to be spending precious final hours there, he has made three stop there is total in the final days you can the campaign saying they can't taking any for granted, they have learned from the past and then he is wrapping up the campaign with the final stop tomorrow night in iowa where he says he knows it all began with his first win in the primary back in 2008. he will rally there with mrs. obama. one mess age delivers at every stop, go out and vote. the campaign says they believe they will win this election with the numbers, they believe they have the numbers, they just have to get their people to vote. don? >> jessica yellin traveling with the president. thanks. at the center of a storm of controversy, ohio's republican secretary of state came to this program to explain himself. he addresses claims by some democrats that his office has been trying to disenfranchise voters. that's next. if ohio becomes the deciding factor in the presidential race,

we'rwith questions fromtump sombing elections.kies do you know where your polling place is? maybe somewhere around my house. mine's just, right over that way. well you can find out exactly where it is using bing elections. it's a good day for politics. which way do you lean politically? conservative. republican. well, using the bing news selector you can find news from whichever way you lean. (together) social on this side, financial. which party is currently predicted to win a majority in the senate? the republicans? would you make a bet on that? no. are you chicken?

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ohio's provisional ballot controversy. >> reporter: no ohio, it was all about provisional ballot a provisional ballot is a ballot people have to fill out if for some reason their right to vote has been challenged n some states like ohio, a voter needs to show identification to vote provisionally. now the official dispute is about whether the voter the other side, the republican attorney genocide said the voter should fill it out. this is important. if ohio is the state that decides the election and if it turns out to be razor close there even if the judge makes the decision before election day, the decision is subject to appeal.

we're looking at the election affected and it could take a long time to comb through those provisional ballots. >> i sat down and asked him about the new requirement. >> it's about who fills it out the the court said it's the responsibility of the voters. now step two is being challenged. what's in step two is where you put your identification.

if the information is wrong the ballot won't be counted. we want the voter to provide that so there are no mistakes. . >> it says that the poll worker, the election official shall record the type of identification provided and not the voter. they're saying you're trying to change the law here. >> this is the way it's been for several elections in the state of ohio. this is like casting a vote. we wouldn't want the poll worker to cast a vote for someone else. we want the voter to do this so it's right. >> does this have the

possibility of having provisional ballots tossed out as this group who the lawsuit is saying. >> we're talking about a handful of ballots in the big scheme of thing. >> ohio's secretary of state. opponents have filed an emergency motion in court claiming ohio's provisional voters are being treated unfairly. he has three days to respond. every vote counts especially in swing states like here in ohio. last month the u.s. supreme court allowed the state to keep the poll open for three days leading up to the election day. this morning, in african-american churches the push to vote went straight from the pulpit to the pews to the polls. this is how sunday sounds at the st. john ame church in columbus, ohio. >> i believe i can fly. say yes. >> an energetic mostly african-american congregation in the state that could decide the

next president. like black churches across the sunday, this sunday, the flock is literally being driven to vote. it's called souls to the polls. and the pastor is making it a tradition. >> why is it so important to get people out? >> because we cannot afford to deny ourselves the right to vote. we ought to vote. we have done too much, come too far not to vote in this election. >> fired up? all right. >> after the sermon, they climb aboard the church bus. 63-year-old eugenia williams says she's bringing everything she could find at home with her name on it, to prove who she is. >> why are you taking your soul to the poll today? >> it seemed to be an important issue to get there early. that's what the president wanted, and that's just been driven and driven and driven.

and i'm lagging, because i didn't go earlier. ♪ i will trust in the lord >> i like the fellowship of my church. it's another family to me. and i just thought it was the right time to go, and make sure that i did get to the polls to vote. >> by the time they get there, something else they may want to pray over, a sea of early voters. hundreds in line in front of them. my goodness. >> where's the end? >> this line, is it worth it to wait in this line? >> oh, yeah, of course it is. i'm not saying i'm going to wait until midnight, but it's certainly worth waiting. don't you think so? >> i think the right to vote is worth waiting for, yes, it is. >> and i'm going to do that. >> but it may just take a while. you know this political season, as it rolled on, we all got slammed day in and day out with rhetoric and party line direction. on this show, we cut through the

spin and we called it no talking points. some of the best next. automaticr just the right amount of light. so you see everything the way it's meant to be seen. maybe even a little better. experience life well lit, ask for transitions adaptive lenses. thanks to the eyeglass guide its never been easier to find the right pair of eyeglasses. check out eyeglassguide.com today. brought to you by transitions lenses.

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together. there's a little good news for homeowners affected by sandy. sandy was not classified as a hurricane when it hit. this allows governors to declare

that homeowners are exempt from the insurance deductible saving as much as 5% of the homes values. it's not so great for businesses. businesses that help companies

that lose revenue because of an unexpected shutdown, but it doesn't cover businesses that just lose power. the donation for relief efforts is rolling in. people are helping victims of sandy in near record numbers. that's this week's getting down to business. it is time now for no talking points. the art of the political dodge, seems all politicians are skilled at it. with debate coaches, aids, analysts, speech writers, they should be. dodging that troubling question can be just as important as providing that game changing momentum building moment. for example. there's a topic change. >> texas has one of the highest rates of uninsured children in the country. over 1 million kids, you did not get an opportunity to respond to that. what do you say to -- how do you explain that? >> you can't have access to some of the finest health care in the world, but we have a 1200 mile border with mexico, and we have a huge number of illegals coming into this country and they're coming into this country because the federal government has failed to secure that border. >> then there's the dismissal. >> is that true? did you follow her on twitter? and if so, how did you find her? what was the reason? >> i have said this a couple ways, i will say it again. i'm not going to permit myself to be distracted by this issue any longer.

>> you are the one who said -- that you were hacked and that's a criminal -- >> dana, let me. i'm going to have to ask that we follow some rules here. one's going to be you ask the questions i give the answers. >> that is reasonable. >> and, of coursethe' the -- i'm just going to ignore you completely dodge. >> governor, what's your stand on fema. would you eliminate fema if you were president? >> why wouldn't you answer any questions on it. >> you know, but all our polling indicates that you don't want to hear talking points. you don't want to hear them. you want direct answers. you want to hear about compromise and progress being made by the lawmakers you elected. so we asked all of our guests on our show not to come on and repeat partisan talking points. that by the way is how this no talking points segment was born during the primaries, it started about a year and a half ago, when senator rand paul tried to dodge my questions about the debt ceiling debate with talking points. >> do you think, who will be to blame here? will it be the president, the democrats, the tea party, republicans, who's going to be to blame here?

>> the president should have taken the fault off the table. we have legislation that would require him to pay the interest on the debt. require him to pay social security checks and require him to pay the soldiers salaries. so we have never been for default or reneging on any checks. the president has put that on the table in a grand elaborate game of chicken. we've always been opposed to that, we think he should reassure the markets and that there's plenty of -- >> mr. paul, i'm going to ask you again. a simple answer to my question, if we indeed default. who's going to be to blame? >> i don't think we should default. if we do, i say it's the president's fault. >> you should know that the public is really frustrated right now. they don't know what's going on. they don't understand why we haven't come to some sort of consensus or you guys haven't

come to some sort of consensus. you want some answers. are you feeling that in washington right now? >> well, you know, we've been continuing to offer compromises about 30 minutes ago, i was on the floor, and i offered to vote for the rebuild. while many in the media -- >> hang on. again -- >> you're in the middle of my answers here. >> i'm asking you to answer the question. with all due respect. do you feel the public sentiment in washington. >> this isn't a talking point, i'm trying to tell you what we did 30 minutes ago on the floor. >> i'm not asking you what you did. i'm asking you if you feel how the public feels in washington. you don't have to tell me what you did, but are you feeling? do you understand how people feel about this? >> we're just getting started. the best of no talking points next. i'll have more awkward conversations than i'm equipped for because i'm raising two girls on my own. i'll worry about the economy more than a few times before they're grown. but it's for them, so i've found a way. who matters most to you says the most about you. massmutual is owned by our policyholders

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before the break we showed you how no talking points got started. on this final weekend before the election. let's take a little trip down memory lane. here's some of our best memorable no talking points moments.

>> it's time now for our ongoing segment no talking points where we hold news makers accountable to answer direct questions without rhetoric and spend. >> i know up close and personal how devastating high taxes are. i understand how high taxes destroy jobs. >> in iowa, many of us tried and tried to get some direct answers from michele bachmann with no luck. instead we got caught up in media scrums like this one. >> do you think african-americans are hurting themselves because they are supporting this president, when sometimes he has not had their issues at heart? >> it will have an impact on african-americans. >> put it a little simpler. >> is it harder for a black person, whether a constituent or

congressperson or lawmaker to constructively criticize this president because he is african-american? >> we support the president, we don't always agree with him. >> are you concerned about the fact that these women do want to -- >> what did i say? >> are you concerned about -- >> excuse me. excuse me. >> no known -- >> the question is, what part of running for leader of the free world does herman cain not understand? you're going to be asked questions, a lot of them, on just about everything you've ever said or done. especially sexual misconduct allegations. >> are you saying that the owner of a restaurant, a private restaurant should be able to decide whether or not to serve black people? >> what i'm saying is, i'm challenging individuals to say what is private property. >> a direct answer to that question, regardless of political party would be a

simple yes or no. the president and the debate. >> where was obama tonight? >> mr. president. >> i'm sorry, yeah, yeah, what's up? >> governor romney has just said that he killed osama bin laden. would you care to respond? >> no, you two go ahead. >> with all due respect, mr. president, if you want to show the right, left and in between that you're not "out of your league" then stop looking at your notes. look people, no matter who they are, dead in the eye, even when you're tired, down or even intimidated and stand up for yourself, because no one else will. is mitt romney trying to move more to the center? what does his statement mean? >> well, first of all, mitt romney is going to be a prolife president. he's talking about what voters care about, which is jobs, the economy, rising deficit. >> hang on, ron. we're not going to do talking

points here. i asked you a simple question. >> well, i -- i didn't ask you about the economy, we can get to that. that's a different issue. >> i want you to take a look at this pew research poll. they already have paul ryan as the winner. do you agree with these polls? >> not that one i certainly don't. vice president biden has a big heart. he's going to tell the truth tonight. which is going to, i think expose to the nation the extreme positions of this paul ryan and his budget. >> we have a short time together. and i want to stick to the debate and not the talking points when it comes to them. let's stick to the question and end. >> and that's tonight's no talking points. the capital one cash rewards card

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theoretically, the federal reserve is independent of the president and the federal branch of the government. the president appoints the chairman of the fed, so it matters to you who sits in that seat. allen blinder is a professor of economics at princeton university. thank you for joining us. it's good to see you. let's talk about ben bernanke's fed. has it had more of an influence on our economy, our markets and the economy than the feds mission would dictate that it has?

>> well, that's a hard question to answer, because the fed's mission is to promote maximum employment and stable prices. as you just said, the price level -- the inflation rate's been very stable over the bernanke era, as it was in the later part of the greenspan era. the fed has been working over time so to speak, both figuratively and literally on its employment mandate. and it still is. it's been -- what's clear has been activist by historical standards. >> cnn got an exclusive sitdown interview today with house speaker john boehner. what he says about the state of ohio may surprise some people. next. are starting to turn around because of business people like you. and regions is here to help. with the experience and service to keep things rolling. from business loans to cash management, we want to be your partner moving forward.

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here in ohio, house speaker john boehner is on a three-day tour of his native state trying to propel mitt romney into the white house. he says he knows what's important to ohio voters. and he had some grim predictions about the fiscal cliff facing the nation. here's dana bash. >> deirdre walsh has been traveling with john boehner on his three-day bus tour through ohio. he's been campaigning for romney, she spoke with him exclusively about romney's prospects in that critical

state. >> romney will do well in ohio. polls don't decide elections, voters do, and listen, i've been around ohio. i've done this trip around ohio for a lot of presidential races in the past. everyone i think ohioans vote with their wallets, that's why i think romney's going to win on tuesday. >> you're confident that he can pull out a win here? >> very confident he's going to win on tuesday about. >> boehner did admit that the president has gotten traction in ohio because of the auto bailout. he insists not everyone there was for it. no matter what happens on election day, congress and the president have to immediately turn to the issue of the fiscal cliff. the speaker was really pessimistic to cnn about any major effort during the lame duck session to do more than just a temporary fix. he even admitted that could be tough to get through. don? >> dana, thank you. there is, of course, another big pressing story. not just this election. new information on the cleanup

of hurricane sandy, next. up the ante. and if you stumble, you get back up. up isn't easy, and we ought to know. we're in the business of up. everyday delta flies a quarter of million people while investing billions improving everything from booking to baggage claim. we're raising the bar on flying and tomorrow we will up it yet again. we'rwith questions fromtump sombing elections.kies do you know where your polling place is? maybe somewhere around my house. mine's just, right over that way. well you can find out exactly where it is using bing elections. it's a good day for politics. which way do you lean politically? conservative. republican. well, using the bing news selector you can find news from whichever way you lean. (together) social on this side, financial. which party is currently predicted to win a majority in the senate? the republicans? would you make a bet on that? no. are you chicken?

what if there was a new that focused less on feesy and more... on what matters? maybe your bank account is taking too much time and maybe it's costing too much money. introducing bluebird by american express and walmart. your alternative to checking and debit. it's loaded with features, not fees. because we think your money should stay where it belongs. with you. the value you expect. the service you deserve. it feels good to bluebird. get it at your local walmart. last month the u.s. national soccer team advanced in the world cup qualifying, and for some of the players representing the united states is a source of pride rooted in their racial identity. george howell explains.

>> mr. gorbachev, tear down this wall. >> reporter: this year marks the 25th anniversary of that famous phrase. but the impact of the u.s. military buildup in germany during the cold war is still being felt today. in an unlikely place. the soccer field. a half dozen sons of american soldiers stationed in germany, born to german mothers have elected to play for the u.s. national soccer team, rather than germany's in the last few years. for some, this decision relates to their racial identity. danny williams and the other five players all have african-american fathers. >> what does it mean to be biracial in germany? versus being biracial here in the united states? >> people look at me in germany, they know i'm not 100% german. i told my parents i feel more american than german. >> jermaine jones was the first of this recent wave from germany to joint american soccer team.

>> i'm different. when you see me, to german people i'm a different guy, i'm mixed. >> unlike williams, whose american father raised him in germany, jones grew up in a single parent household. >> my mom and he went their separate ways when i was young. >> jones has rekindled his relationship with his father since deciding to play for the u.s. after scoring his first goal for the stars and stripes, he performed a tribute to his soldier father. >> you gave a salute to your dad? >> yeah, he called me after the game. thank you. everybody sees it, everybody's proud of you. >> a simple gesture of pride rooted in history. >> soledad o'brien explains provocative questions about skin color and race. who is black in america, the documentary premieres sunday

december 9th only on cnn. one week after hurricane sandy roared ashore, the death toll has risen to 110. up to 40,000 people in the city may need at least temporary housing. about a million and a half people along the east coast still are without power. that's down from more than 2 million earlier today. there's also word tonight that workers have secured the damaged crane above new york city's west 57th street. all streets in the area are now being reopened. a check on some of the day's nonpolitical news is next. including a young boy mauled to

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checking some of the stories making headlines right now, a group of african painted dogs killed a young boy who fell into the exhibit sunday at the pittsburgh zoo. the zoo is killed indefinitely. the zoo staff tried to save the boy who was about three. they shot darts to scare the dogs. one dog was killed in the rescue effort. that gunfire erupted today in tripoli. one person was killed when two militia groups traded fire. one of the groups was disbanded. gas is in short supply in libya. workers at a key refinery are striking. they want better medical treatment for wounds suffered in libya's civil war. i'm don lemon in columbus, ohio. i want to thank our host, the